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So far, book 3 is ok. Some pieces I certainly enjoy more than others. And I do like the extra theory stuff in the All in One book, since I do need to get up to speed on that stuff, too. Just got thru the diminished 7th chords theory stuff and am working on the Clementi Prelude. Will have to evaluate (after talking with my teacher) whether I want to tackle the Bach WTC Prelude that the book says you can after the Clementi (the Bach is in the Ambitious section at the back of the book). I will try to learn it at some point, but I am also working on some things outside the Alfred's book, so don't know how much more I want to pile on right now.

I believe, that, yes, after book 3, you do sprout wings....

_________________________
-Mak

1889 Mason & Hamlin screwstringer uprightKawai MP-4 digital

---------------------------When life hands you lemons, throw them back and add some of your own. Stupid life.

Ok, so the beginning is the same. Super Special song I have to admit was less than enthusiastic for me- the title and the lyrics were kinda lame. But I enjoyed playing Calypso Rhumba. I still go back to that one now and then.

_________________________
-Mak

1889 Mason & Hamlin screwstringer uprightKawai MP-4 digital

---------------------------When life hands you lemons, throw them back and add some of your own. Stupid life.

Originally posted by Mark...: Well it took a while, offically started book 3 today. Still cleaning up the back end of book two...

Also the first anniversary with my teacher... [/b]

Mark, that is fantastic!

Also next week is my first anni. with my teach. I have 9 more songs left in book 2. Book 3 looks scary She has been great and I have really progressed with her. I want to get her some'n maybe a gift card to her favourite catalog....

Originally posted by Mark...: Well it took a while, offically started book 3 today. Still cleaning up the back end of book two...

Also the first anniversary with my teacher... [/b]

Mark, that is fantastic!

Also next week is my first anni. with my teach. I have 9 more songs left in book 2. Book 3 looks scary She has been great and I have really progressed with her. I want to get her some'n maybe a gift card to her favourite catalog....

Did you get your teach anything?...

is there a protocol to this... anyone? [/b]

Nothing for the anniversary, but a music book and a gift card for Christmas...

Have been in book 3 for about a month and find the book very enjoyable for the most part. I thought these larger pieces would slow me down but so far so good. When I hit Serenade from atring quartet I went into a panic. I thought my left hand deserterd me, butby practicing the Alberti bass I was able to over come that issue.

Book 3 pieces with comments so far:

A Super Special Sorta Song - ok, not a favorite. I call it a paying your dues type piece,,,

Calypso Rhumba - average, interesting

Fandango - Excellent, love this one. Sweet sounding...

Modern Sounds - OK, second part very nice.

Serenade - scary at first, lots of work. Very enjoyable and challenging piece.

A very Special day - written by Palmer who wrote the first piece, Average at best. I don't like this writers work.

A Classy Rag - very nice piece still working on...

Prelude in D Minor - listen to this magical sounding piece from a couple of U tube players:

A Super Special Sorta Song - I was not very fond of this one myself. But I got thru it.

Calypso Rhumba - I like this one. Still go back and play it now and again.

Fandango - This one I was not thrilled with. It was ok.

Modern Sounds - Kinda neat sounding.

Serenade - Yeah, this one was a bit tough. Then again, my Alberti bass leaves a lot to be desired!

A very Special day - I wasn't especially fond of this one but my teacher liked the way I played it.

A Classy Rag - I had a hard time getting a good idea what this was supposed to sound like, and that made it hard to figure out.

Prelude in D Minor - I really, really like this one! My teacher has me play it a bit slower than the YouTube videos, but it really is very pretty. I think this is going to be a keeper.

When we got to the Prelude, she said, "Oh yes, eventually we will be playing a lot of Clementi!" Yeah, I see it coming (from when daughter took piano- different teacher). Clementi Sonatinas are basic repertoire. And they are scary!!

And moving along:

Star Spangled Banner- Different arrangement of this one. Teacher says it's one of the most difficult in any of their books. I do not like the tremolos! Still struggling here.

Make Up Your Mind- Back and forth in Major and related minor. Not too difficult. Got thru it quickly.

Swan Lake- just barely started on this one. Slow going right now.

So that's where I am in Alfred's 3.

_________________________
-Mak

1889 Mason & Hamlin screwstringer uprightKawai MP-4 digital

---------------------------When life hands you lemons, throw them back and add some of your own. Stupid life.

I have mixed feelings about book 3 - scared I guess. But then, that's how I felt about book 2 as I was ending book 1. Also I’m thinking of taking the summer off (I know its not advisable) to gallivant with the kids...

anyways... Mark I know this is weird - but, do you have a stop watch. I found that to be the only way I could build 'speed' - yes, I know I know thats what the metronome is for - but the 'nome never works for me when I am just learning a piece. that tick tick confuses me...

for ex. I am amazed I used to take :52 secs to play a :07sec measure.

maybe you could try the stop watch route...

Quote:

Originally posted by Mark...: PS: I'm still cleaning up the back of book two. Trying to get Cannon under 6+ mins... [/b]

In general, I like Book 3. (I have the All In One edition, btw) Some pieces are better (IMO) than others. I'm sure some of what I like, others will not, and vice versa. But a big part of that is individual taste. If you have used the first 2 and basically enjoyed them and felt they helped you, then I don't think you will be disappointed in 3. The Ambitous section at the end of 3 is much more complex than anything at the end of 2, but that's to be expected, and hopefully you are ready for them as you get to them.

As for after that, I don't know. I don't want to concentrate completely on classical, and my teacher is pretty much classically trained. She is more than willing to look at anything I want to, tho, and we have worked on some jazz, new age, etc along the way. She does get a bit "fussy" about some of the "arrangements" of pop songs, tho. Can't say as I blame her- some of them are just bad. LOL I know she has some more Clementi up her sleeve for me. And I have a few books and sheets I've collected, so we should be good for while.

_________________________
-Mak

1889 Mason & Hamlin screwstringer uprightKawai MP-4 digital

---------------------------When life hands you lemons, throw them back and add some of your own. Stupid life.

Let's see, I started book 3 in late July of '07. The furthest I am right now is page 45, of 141 pages. Tho I am still working on a couple earlier pages, also. I figure this one is going to take me over a year to get finished with.

_________________________
-Mak

1889 Mason & Hamlin screwstringer uprightKawai MP-4 digital

---------------------------When life hands you lemons, throw them back and add some of your own. Stupid life.

Originally posted by IamElise: I have mixed feelings about book 3 - scared I guess. But then, that's how I felt about book 2 as I was ending book 1. Also I’m thinking of taking the summer off (I know its not advisable) to gallivant with the kids...

anyways... Mark I know this is weird - but, do you have a stop watch. I found that to be the only way I could build 'speed' - yes, I know I know thats what the metronome is for - but the 'nome never works for me when I am just learning a piece. that tick tick confuses me...

for ex. I am amazed I used to take :52 secs to play a :07sec measure.

maybe you could try the stop watch route...

Quote:

Originally posted by Mark...: PS: I'm still cleaning up the back of book two. Trying to get Cannon under 6+ mins... [/b]

[/b]

I use a stop watch to keep my piano log time and I use it for timing Canon. Never used it for other pieces. Funburger played Canon on U-tube in 3:33 and that gives me a goal time.

Mark, I started Book 3 about a month ago and have worked my way up to the Serenade, but I still have work to do on the Canon in Book 2. Since you seem to have mastered it I wonder if you could help me with the fingering on the last page where it says "Still Slower". My fourth finger after the triad is letting me down and I can't get it to play smoothly. Any suggestions?

Originally posted by OldFingers: Mark, I started Book 3 about a month ago and have worked my way up to the Serenade, but I still have work to do on the Canon in Book 2. Since you seem to have mastered it I wonder if you could help me with the fingering on the last page where it says "Still Slower". My fourth finger after the triad is letting me down and I can't get it to play smoothly. Any suggestions? [/b]

I haven't mastered Canon yet...

In regard to your question I use the suggested 531 fingering for the triad of ADF# but move in tight so the pinkie can hit the F# then the 4 is right over the E ready to be struck fairly easy.

If its a strength or control issue with the normally weak 4 finger you might need to do some exercises. But if you made it to book 3 I wouldn't think it would be an issue.

Hope this helps..

PS: with the Serenade make sure you practice the Alberti base a lot. It makes a world of difference...

Mark, it might be a strength issue. I don't recall having anything in book 2 that required use of the 4th finger in quite the same way. As it happens, I can only practice that section 2-3 times at a sitting as my wrist gets very tired. I'll try digging out an appropriate Hanon exercise. Do you use your arms to help you here?

The Alberti bass did not give me any problem. It seems that once I recognized the chords being used, I didn't have to read the LH and it moved along fairly easily. I am having some trouble with the 3 measures in the bottom line of page 1 though. It's a fair jump in the right hand and I don't have that going smoothly yet.

Originally posted by OldFingers: Mark, it might be a strength issue. I don't recall having anything in book 2 that required use of the 4th finger in quite the same way. As it happens, I can only practice that section 2-3 times at a sitting as my wrist gets very tired. I'll try digging out an appropriate Hanon exercise. Do you use your arms to help you here?

The Alberti bass did not give me any problem. It seems that once I recognized the chords being used, I didn't have to read the LH and it moved along fairly easily. I am having some trouble with the 3 measures in the bottom line of page 1 though. It's a fair jump in the right hand and I don't have that going smoothly yet.

Bob [/b]

That area of Canon hasn't been a problem. Do you bring your hand forward? You get more control that way.

Mark, my teacher solved my fingering problem by suggesting I use 1-2-4 on the triads. I know this is not cricket, but since I'm not preparing for the Royal Conservatory, what does it matter. Besides, at my age, I'm lucky that my fingers work at all.

Regarding Serenade, I was so focussed on getting the Alberti Bass that I was excessively heavy with my left hand. It turns out that this piece is a very nice exercise in balance, whereby the left hand is played much softer than the right. I find that difficult to do, but it makes the piece more interesting to play and it sounds much nicer.

Originally posted by OldFingers: Mark, my teacher solved my fingering problem by suggesting I use 1-2-4 on the triads. I know this is not cricket, but since I'm not preparing for the Royal Conservatory, what does it matter. Besides, at my age, I'm lucky that my fingers work at all.

Regarding Serenade, I was so focussed on getting the Alberti Bass that I was excessively heavy with my left hand. It turns out that this piece is a very nice exercise in balance, whereby the left hand is played much softer than the right. I find that difficult to do, but it makes the piece more interesting to play and it sounds much nicer. [/b]

My teacher say what ever works for you is a good thing.

I thought I meet a wall when I first started Serenade because of so much contrary left hand work, But after a while it started to come together. Haven't played it close to clean yet.

Now that I've been exposed to pieces like The Chopin Etude, Danny Boy, Canon and Serenade, I'm less inclined to want to spend my time and effort on those labelled "Just for Fun". Mark, since you and I seem to be the only remaining partcipants in this thread, I was wondering what your thoughts were with respect to the "Just for Fun" pieces.

I've also been out of the Alfred's book for a bit again, and have gotten back into it the last few weeks.

As for the Just For Fun pieces, I haven't really found any (so far) that have caused me to want to work them to fully polished "perfection." So, while we don't skip them, they are ones that my teacher and I often agree are "good enough," and then let them go. I have to admit that the ones that get to me are often the distillations of orchestral works to a piano piece. Some (not all, of course) just don't condense well and it's very hard to hear anything in them. And I am a person who has to hear the - hmm, not sure what to call it? Melody?- in the music to be able to play it. Otherwise, it's all just random notes to me, and has no cohesion. Sometimes, if I listen to the original, it helps, but sometimes, it is so different from the piano reduction that it just isn't any better. And so I've been struggling with the Scherezade piece and the Unfinished Symphony in Alfred's 3. Scherezade is finally starting to come together, but that Symphony- eek! I have to admit that, right now, I am enjoying the supplemental pieces I am working on more than Alfred's.

_________________________
-Mak

1889 Mason & Hamlin screwstringer uprightKawai MP-4 digital

---------------------------When life hands you lemons, throw them back and add some of your own. Stupid life.

Originally posted by OldFingers: Now that I've been exposed to pieces like The Chopin Etude, Danny Boy, Canon and Serenade, I'm less inclined to want to spend my time and effort on those labelled "Just for Fun". Mark, since you and I seem to be the only remaining partcipants in this thread, I was wondering what your thoughts were with respect to the "Just for Fun" pieces. [/b]

I haven't even tried the "Just for Fun" pieces. I so busy working on the regular book 3 stuff. Some are really tough...